Albany County considering ban on single-use plastic bags

Albany County wants to join a growing number of governments across the state and country that are banning single-use plastic bags to reduce the amount of plastic that winds up in landfills and oceans.

Albany County wants to join a growing number of governments across the state and country that are banning single-use plastic bags to reduce the amount of plastic that winds up in landfills and oceans.

Photo: Stock Photo Courtesy Of Pexels.com.

Photo: Stock Photo Courtesy Of Pexels.com.

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Albany County wants to join a growing number of governments across the state and country that are banning single-use plastic bags to reduce the amount of plastic that winds up in landfills and oceans.

Albany County wants to join a growing number of governments across the state and country that are banning single-use plastic bags to reduce the amount of plastic that winds up in landfills and oceans.

Photo: Stock Photo Courtesy Of Pexels.com.

Albany County considering ban on single-use plastic bags

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Albany County wants to join a growing number of governments across the state and country that are banning single-use plastic bags to reduce the amount of plastic that winds up in landfills and oceans.

The local law would ban plastic bags at all stores in the county. Stores could offer customers who don't bring reusable totes either recyclable paper bags or boxes to carry purchases for a fee of 5 cents each.

Over the years, the county has enacted various prohibitions aimed at addressing climate change and other environmental issues, most recently expanding its ban on foam-based products to all food service businesses. The foam ban initially applied to chain restaurants with 15 or more locations.

“I think banning single-use plastic bags is an obvious next priority,” said Joanne Cunningham, a Bethlehem Democrat who is sponsoring the law. “I would say we need to do a lot of things simultaneously to address climate change and our addiction to plastic, and I think eliminating the scourge of single-use plastic bags should be at the top of the list.”

Businesses that didn't abide by the law could face fines. The first violation would result in a warning, but subsequent violations would lead to fines ranging from $100 for the first offense to $500 for the fourth offense.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates 80 percent of plastic pollution in the ocean comes from land-based trash, including plastic bags. The bags are usually made from high- or low-density polyethylene, or a combination of the two, all of which are fossil fuels derivatives, according to a report released by the New York State Plastic Bag Task Force in 2018.

It’s estimated that about 100 billion single-use plastic bags are used in the U.S. annually, with the average family using 1,500 bags each year. The average use of that bag is 12 minutes, the task force report stated.

Plastics made up 18.9 percent of all municipal waste dumped in landfills in the U.S. in 2015, according to the EPA.

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Opponents of the bans, like the Bag the Ban initiative spearheaded by the American Progressive Bag Alliance representing plastic bag manufacturing and the recycling industry, argue the prohibitions will have unintended consequences whether that be sacrificing jobs or putting additional costs on low-income families.

More than a dozen municipalities across New York have enacted plastic bag bans in recent years, some of which include a fee for bags when people don't bring their own. Last year, the Hudson Valley counties of Dutchess and Ulster both passed bans. Ulster County included a fee.

Cunningham said communities that enact a hybrid model with a ban and fee find it more effective.

“A fee that you would have to pay to essentially purchase a bag for use for items in the store is a powerful incentive for consumers to train themselves to start bringing their own bags,” she said. “I think once we do this, you’re going to start to see behavior change.”

Opponents dismiss the idea the bans and fees will have any effect on reducing litter and waste, pointing out that plastic bags can be recycled, and that alternatives that seem “greener” may require more natural resources to produce and transport them, according to the alliance’s Bag the Ban project website.

Albany County’s proposal allows stores to waive the fee for those on government assistance, like SNAP or WIC, and use its discretion on waiving the fee for any “low-income constituency it deems appropriate,” according to the proposed law.

New York is considering a statewide ban on plastic bags, but it’s unclear if it will make it through this year's budget negotiations.